


The Devil is in the Details

by Sans_Souci



Category: Elementary (TV)
Genre: Clyde is cool, DIY, Dollhouses, Dolls, Dolls were not hurt in the writing of this fic, Drabble, Gen, Headcanon, Hobbies, Joan is the best roommate, Platonic Relationships, Sherlock Being Sherlock, Sherlock builds everything, Training
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-10-13
Updated: 2013-10-13
Packaged: 2017-12-29 07:28:56
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1002635
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sans_Souci/pseuds/Sans_Souci
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Welcome to the dollhouse. A study in minutiae.</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Devil is in the Details

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“A dollhouse,” Joan said. Her tone was mostly neutral, but Sherlock knew that if he turned around, he would see her brows lifted in a combination of surprise and perplexity as she tried to deduce his motives for constructing a three-storeyed, open fronted miniature dwelling.

“A dollhouse,” Sherlock confirmed as he painted the final layer of varnish over the one twelfth scale railings for the staircase. He had a neck-ache, but he was almost done for the day. Various miniature fittings and furnishings were scattered over the worktable and a few trays on the floor while a large boxy structure took pride of place on a homemade stand. Sherlock was especially pleased with the attic and the basement. It might be a bit too much to wire the house up for electricity, but perhaps if he had the time later . . .

“You made all of this yourself?” She knew that he built most of his bee hives by himself. He had also constructed Clyde’s terrarium from scratch when she had complained that the tortoise could not live in his desk drawer forever.

“Basic carpentry can be applied to many things other than constructing apiaries. Recycled crates. Balsa wood. Tools from local DIY shops. Though some of the fixtures had to be sourced from Etsy and various toy emporiums,” he admitted. The lull between cases had to be filled, though he had acceded to Joan’s request that he sleep at least five hours a day. “The human fascination with miniatures is a very specialised field. I may have custom requests in the future.”

“And you’ve bought other things during your mini-shopping spree as well, I see,” Joan murmured as she looked over a stack of brightly coloured boxes. “Sindy and Mindy?”

“Occupants,” he replied succinctly. “I have male ones as well. Name them as you will.”

“Uh-huh. Dolls for a dollhouse.”

“Also known as the potential victims. I have, on occasion, constructed existing and potential crime scenes in miniature for analysis.”

“When I last played with dolls, I never had to consider Sindy’s roommate as a potential murder suspect,” Joan admitted as she took one of the plastic figurines out of its packaging.

“It’s not always murder.” Sherlock straightened a wooden dowel and stepped back from his work. “I thought would be a good test of your analytical skills when we’re not investgating a case, Watson.”

“So I have to determine if Sindy or Mindy was a victim of foul play just by looking at a scene you set up?”

Sherlock nodded as he popped the paint brush into a jar of turpentine. “Essentially. Smaller clues can be incorporated later to train your observational acumen.”

“Wow, a magnifying glass would actually be necessary for details at this scale.” Noticeably more enthusiastic now that there was a method to his sudden bout of carpentry, Joan bent to examine the miniature rooms more closely. 

On the floor, Clyde the tortoise mirrored her curiosity as he ambled over slowly to the trays of furnishings and assorted parts.

“Clyde--you can be curious about the dollhouse furniture after they dry,” Joan said when she noticed this, lifting the tortoise away from a freshly varnished miniature sideboard and depositing him back into the recycled crate that served as his terrarium.

“It should be ready in a day or so. In the meantime, you may christen the potential victims and suspects.”

“Sindy and Mindy need to have backgrounds as well,” Joan said, looking thoughtfully at the dolls. “Maybe they’re roommates. From after college. They could have a miniature yearbook and photos on the walls.”

“The devil is in the details as always, Watson,” Sherlock said, pleased that she was sharing his interest. Or at least indulging him as they trained together.

She stood the doll next to Clyde’s terrarium. The tortoise looked over to check if food was on the way. “Sindy and Mindy visited the Galapagos Islands for a vacation?”

“No doubt bonded by their shared love of giant tortoises,” he agreed readily in his drollest tone. 

Joan cracked up then. Clyde continued to crane his neck in search of lettuce.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

**Author's Note:**

> Self-indulgence: I am occasionally into the making of miniatures, so I was doubly excited about Sherlock and Joan's dollhouse crime-scene. Detailed dollhouses float my boat. Also, the idea of Sherlock building a dollhouse from scratch is appealing because he can indulge in details at an even tinier scale. He is also totally into DIY.


End file.
